Understanding the Enigma
by denise1
Summary: On their first mission as a team, Sam tries to understand the enigma of her alien teammate


Understanding the Enigma

By

Denise

Sam walked through the sparse, coarse grass on P3575 fighting the urge to pinch herself. She was on another planet. Holy Hannah! This wasn't some fantasy or some game of 'let's pretend'. It was real. As real as the light from an alien sun beating down on them. As real as the three men walking with her.

Colonel O'Neill was on point. Despite the mission reports she'd memorized he was nothing like she'd imagined. His accounting of the Abydos mission had been precise and cold. Nothing like the man that was now her superior officer, odd sense of humor and all. She'd been grateful for that sense of humor after their first meeting. She cringed every time she recalled her speech over the briefing room table. A string of sleepless nights, jet lag and one hell of an adrenaline high had left her feeling decidedly loopy. Fortunately he seemed content to forget it ever happened. Which was just fine with her. 

Doctor Jackson, it's Daniel not Dan or Danny please, was walking behind the colonel, his eyes darting around like a kid on his first trip to Disneyland. Once she'd heard that the man had figured out how to work the gate she'd wanted nothing more than to meet him. In fact she'd been well on her way to getting transferred to Colorado when word had come of his death and the Abydos gate being destroyed. Meeting a very alive Daniel Jackson a year later had been a huge bonus on top of finally going to another planet. NASA eat your heart out.

She felt a certain kinship with the man largely due to him being one of the few people that she'd encountered lately whose brain worked in intuitive leaps like hers. He also had this sense of wonder and discovery that was all too rare in the jaded military circles she was used to.

She fought the urge to turn and look at the fourth member of their group, Teal'c. The alien turncoat who had nearly killed them just a few weeks ago that was now an ally. She hadn't had a problem with the colonel giving the man sanctuary. Given his betrayal he was doomed to die on Chulak. She hadn't even minded the idea of him living on Earth. He was a valuable source of intelligence, assuming he was telling the truth and not playing the double agent.

But a member of her team? That was one hell of a large step, traitor to comrade in arms in one fell swoop. What exactly did the colonel see that she didn't? Yes he did turn on his men to save their lives. And he did give his knowledge of the Goa'uld freely, though it had yet to be proven the knowledge he was giving was the truth. He had helped them with Kawalsky but how could they know he had really helped?

Perhaps the he and the Goa'uld had been in collusion and he only helped kill it to cover his tracks after the goa'uld revealed himself. Or maybe his help had been sincere. She may never know the truth. She just had to trust that the colonel was a good judge of character.

So far the Jaffa had maintained his distance, keeping himself reserved. He wasn't reluctant with any information, but he wasn't exactly spouting off at the mouth either. Enigmatic. That was the word. A riddle wrapped in an enigma surrounded by a conundrum. A six foot tall puzzle who could kill with his bare hands. Fun.

"Ok kids. Decision time," O'Neill said, stopping his steady march through the thin vegetation.

"Sir?" she asked as they gathered close.

"Well the MALP may have shown favorable conditions but it doesn't know squat about distances. I reckon we have about 5 hours of light left and there's no way we're gonna get both your samples and look at your ruin before we're due back and I am not staying the night here," he said pointing at Sam and Daniel in turn. "So, do we get to look at rocks or pick them up?"

"Jack, our only clues to who lived here is in those ruins…"

"Colonel, if I collect no samples then we'll have no idea of the resources this planet could offer…"

Jack responded by pulling a coin out of his pocket. "Aah." He held up his hands to silence the pair. "Heads or tails?" Neither Sam nor Daniel looked happy at the prospect of leaving it all up to chance.

"Why do we not accomplish both goals?" Teal'c spoke up. The trio turned mildly surprised. In truth they'd sort of forgotten he was with them. "Captain Carter and I can retrieve her samples while you travel with Daniel Jackson to the ruins. If we do not tarry we should have sufficient time to attain our objectives then regroup and return to earth within our allotted time."

/What? Go off alone with him? Alone with an alien on an alien planet? What was he...Nuts?/

"Carter?" O'Neill's voice broke into her thoughts.

"Sir?"

"That cool with you?" he asked giving her a meaningful look. She saw that he had at least an inkling of her insecurities and was almost asking her permission. That more than anything swayed her mind.

"Yes sir," she said, giving a small nod of her head.

"Ok. You two go thatta way; we'll go thissa way. RV at the gate in two hours. Check-ins every 30 minutes."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam scooped up a bit of dirt and slid it into the tube. As she pushed on the stopper she cast a glance at her companion.  Teal'c was about ten feet away his eyes scanning the horizon. P3575 was an arid planet, reminding her of the American Southwest. The few trees they'd seen were stunted and warped by the wind. Most of the vegetation were hardy succulents or an occasional cacti.

During the walk here Teal'c had been quiet. A constant presence at her side but not one that required attention. She didn't know if his silence comforted or unnerved her. It was nice not to have to worry about making small talk…what do you talk about with an alien warrior anyway? Her single attempt at 'how's the weather' had lasted about thirty seconds. But his silence also made her feel slightly uncomfortable. She wondered what thoughts were swirling under that enigmatic façade?

It had been a relief when he's spied the caves she'd picked as a site to take her samples. His guess was that it had been an abandoned mine and therefore likely to contain bits of minerals that might have been brought up from under the surface of the planet.

The chance to gather her samples had given her the opportunity to gather her thoughts. She decided to try conversation again.  "I wonder what they were mining for?" she asked, getting to her feet. "It had to have been something pretty valuable to make it worth packing it to and from the gate."

"The goa'uld do not worry themselves with such trivialities. Such tasks are one reason they take so many human slaves." He paused and cocked his head.

"What?" she started then stopped as he raised his hand.

"There is a storm approaching," he reported pointing his staff towards the horizon. Sam looked and saw with dismay that he was right.

'Carter? Teal'c?' Her radio crackled to life.

'Sir?'

'You guys keeping an eye on the weather?'

'Yes sir.' Sam shot a look at her companion. Well one of them had been paying attention. 'We're on our way back now,' she said picking up her sample case and shoving it into her pack.

'Us too…No arguments Daniel. Let's get home before this hits. I'm too damn old to bivouac in the rain.'

'Yes sir.' She stood still as Teal'c slipped behind her and attached her pack to her vest.

They started retracing their steps both keeping a wary eye on the billowing clouds.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"1:1,000…2:1,000…" she started to count after a particularly brilliant flash of lightening. As the storm grew slowly closer it also intensified. If they had been on Earth the National Weather Service would be issuing warnings.

"Captain Carter?"

She ignored him and continued to count stopping only as she heard the roll of thunder.

"Ten miles," she said earning a curious look from her teammate. "Light travels faster than sound. So if you count the seconds between when you see the lightening and when you hear the thunder and divide it by five you get about how many miles away a storm is. Of course this is assuming that the speed of sound and light are universally constant," she explained, finishing with a shrug, taking off the bothersome helmet and hanging it on her belt. Vaguely she wondered what her chances were of leaving it behind next time.

He started to tell her they had a similar practice in battle but refrained, settling for a simple nod. He was sure that she wasn't interested. The information had no strategic value.  And that appeared to be all the Tau'ri were interested in. Few seemed to see him as a person rather than a resource. Much like the Goa'uld. 

He couldn't miss the captain's discomfort with him. Her wary looks were nothing new. It was much the same with many other of the Tau'ri. In fact only O'Neill appeared comfortable with his presence. The man treated him more as an equal rather than a vanquished foe. The simple fact that O'Neill trusted him with the safety of one of his own spoke volumes to Teal'c. It was a trust few seemed to feel. Teal'c could empathize with Daniel Jackson's reluctance and cool reception.  After all it had been his choice that had condemned the man's wife to a living death. But he did not understand the captain's cautious behavior. He had hoped his surrendering his staff weapon to her would have been sufficient proof of his position.

Among Jaffa the day a warrior received his staff weapon was a day of honor. The staff was a symbol that he was the chosen of his God, the elite. Every Jaffa actually had two staffs. One he used in battle and another to be used for ceremonial purposes. The latter was often passed from father to son, a cherished family heirloom.  .

When he surrendered the weapon to Captain Carter he was offering his allegiance to her as the next down the chain of command to O'Neill. It was a pledge she hadn't comprehended.   .

When she'd stepped forward he'd thought she'd understood, that he was promising to fight at her side until his death. That he was putting his life in her hands.  But he had been wrong. She looked upon him with a wary eye, almost as though she expected him to harm her as soon as she let her guard down.

Perhaps it had to do with her being female? He'd never fought at the side of a female warrior before. Among jaffa females were wives or priestesses. And only the priestesses carried prim'ta.

He wondered about the Tau'ri, and why there appeared to be so few females. Most of the people he'd seen at the SGC had been male. O'Neill said there was much more to his world. Maybe the rest of the females were segregated from the warriors as wives were often segregated from their fighting husbands. Or perhaps there was a shortage of women. But that did not make sense, if women were a rarity why risk the life of one in battle? Her presence was a puzzle he could not figure out.

Perhaps Captain Carter's family owed a debt to society? Maybe she had been given in service to the SGC as reparation for wrongs committed by her family? There was a practice among many races to give their children in reparation for wrongs committed upon their rulers. He wanted to ask her yet refrained. If she indeed had such a stain upon her honor it would be the ultimate in rudeness to inquire.

"Whoa!" He centered his attention back to his surroundings, ashamed to realize he'd been less than vigilant. Bra'tac would have had him punished for such inattention.

On their trek to the site they had crossed a small stream, the only sign of water they'd seen. The waterway had been shallow and placid. They had been able to cross it without even getting their feet wet, simply skipping from rock to rock. If he could not see his own tracks leading from the stream he would think it was a totally different waterway and that they had gotten lost somehow. It was now easily four times as wide as it was had been   before. The once-clear water was now muddy and roiling.

'Carter? Teal'c? What's your status?'

'Sir we're almost there. We're about two clicks away,' she reported into her radio, eyeing the water warily.

'OK. You want to pick up the pace a little. So far this storm's been keeping its distance but if it does decide to switch directions we're toast.'

'Yes sir. We'll be there in about thirty minutes.' she released the radio and looked again at the stream.

"You plan to ford here?"

"I guess. I mean it doesn't look that deep. I did worse in basic training. And we don't exactly have all day to look for a better spot," she said, pulling her rifle strap over her head so she could keep it out of the water.

He looked speculatively from her to the water. It was running quickly but was not too deep, perhaps slightly below his waist. However it wasn't the depth that concerned him, rather the sheer presence of the water. He had spent most of his life serving his God, striving to attain his goal of avenging his father. He'd witnessed miracles on a dozen planets and had seen some truly amazing and indescribable things. There was little that would shock him. However in his near century of living there was one thing he had never learned to do…Swim.

Chulak's few bodies of natural water were far too cold to bathe in. And his status as one of Apophis' jaffa and later First Prime assured his access to indoor bathing facilities.

He found the prospect of wading across the stream a distasteful one.  He looked at his companion and saw annoyance rather than fear on her face. That made him keep his reservations to himself. If a Tau'ri female could do this, so could the ex-First Prime to a false god.  She waded into the muddy water with a small curse.

"Captain Carter. Is something wrong?" Were there predators in the water?

"What? No. I ….I just HATE soggy boots," she complained with a resigned smile.

He followed her as the water got deeper and the current more powerful. She stumbled a bit and he shot out his arm to steady her. He did not know if he was imagining things or if the water was indeed getting deeper.

"Just a rock. Sorry," she said, turning back to glance at him. "Oh my God!" she said, looking upstream.

He followed her gaze and felt his stomach sink at the sight of a wall of water speeding towards them. With the silent communication of survival and fear they both tried to run fighting the water to escape it. He made it about three paces when his foot slipped into a small depression in the streambed throwing him off balance. He flailed as the rushing water further compromised his balance, pushing him off his feet.

With a cry he felt himself fall, the force of the current pushing him downstream. He jerked to a halt, the water rushing over him. He forced his head through the surface and saw that Captain Carter had abandoned her rifle and instead grabbed his staff weapon, which he'd kept a hold of. He could see that she was leaning back a bit attempting to contradict the force of the current, which was now buffeting her as well. The water was now up above her waist and he knew she would not be able to fight it much longer. He tried to put his feet beneath him but not even his strength was a match for the water; it kept sweeping his feet out from under him. Perhaps in time he could save himself. But time was not something they had right now. If the captain did not make it to the shore in the next few minutes she too would fall victim to the torrent. He had sworn to protect the Tau'ri, not cause their deaths. With a silent prayer to a real deity for mercy he opened his hands, abandoning himself to whatever fate the water had for him.

"NO!" Sam screamed in horror as her teammate let go of the staff weapon. The sudden loss of weight caused her to lose her balance just as the wave of water rushed over her, sweeping her off her feet and into the torrent. She turned her thoughts from her companion's survival to her own.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

'Carter? Teal'c? Where the hell are you guys?' Jack called casting a worried eye at the sky then back at the all too empty clearing he and Daniel were standing in.

He was no meteorologist but he knew that being in the middle of a clearing standing next to a twenty foot tall metal ring in a lightning storm just wasn't a good place to be. Being struck by lightening was one experience he could live without. This intergalactic exploring was great, but it had been more than a few years since he'd done any real fieldwork, not counting Abydos. Right now he just wanted to go home and crash in his armchair. And if Carter and Teal'c would just get their butts here…he could debrief and get home in time enjoy the evening.

"Maybe they went back already?" Daniel suggested with a shrug. He wouldn't think so but who knew how the military did things?

"No," Jack declared. "That's not procedure. I said RV at the gate. Carter's enough of a soldier to know better." He studied the ground. There had been no signs of sentient life and he'd seen no other footprints than their own. Which was good.  He sighed and checked his watch. He called on the radio again and received the same response. "Dial it up," he ordered.

"What? You said they're here. We can't just leave them because they're late," Daniel protested.

"We're not. I just think it might be a good idea to let the SGC know what's going on in case we pull a Houdini too. Now dial it up."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Damn. She must have left the window open. Maybe that's why it was so cold. She needed to find the blanket. That would work. Then she wouldn't have to get out of bed to close the window.

She kicked her legs frowning as they moved freely but felt heavy. Where was her blanket? And her pillow. She had these nice down pillows…just then a wet earthy smell permeated her senses. Her fabric softener didn't smell like this. With a small moan she dug her fingers into the sand…sand? What the?

Memory rushed back in with the force of the flash flood. The water…struggling to keep her head above the surface, trying to avoid the boulders and rocks and not always succeeding. The cold, so cold water pulling her down as she struggled to stay afloat.

With a startled cry she pushed herself up only to fall back as her left arm gave out from under her.

Biting her lip she rolled to her back picking up her left arm with her right and laying it across her stomach. Now she could feel warmth seeping onto her belly. Gingerly she looked down and wasn't surprised to see the olive drab material stained dark. She was bleeding. Great. Moving more slowly this time she sat up cradling her arm in her lap.

Taking a couple of breaths she unzipped her jacket and struggled to slip out of it, noticing almost as an afterthought that her pack was gone, likely a victim of the current.  "Oh man," she whispered as the damage was revealed. There was a gash about four inches long across her forearm, still bleeding steadily. At least she could still feel and move her fingers so there seemed to be no permanent damage done. Ok. All she had to do was get Teal'c to put a pressure bandage on and head back…Teal'c…Where was Teal'c?

She scanned her surroundings her heart sinking as she saw a still green figure amongst the mud and rocks. She pushed herself to her feet and staggered over to him.

He was lying face down in a small pool of water. "Teal'c?" She rolled him over, struggling a bit with his bulk. She leaned over and cursed as she realized he wasn't breathing. Handicapped with only one workable hand she tipped his head back and pinched his nose shut. She took a deep breath and breathed into his mouth, relieved to see his chest rise. Getting no response she breathed again. "Come on." She breathed a third time and he responded with a shuddering breath of his own followed by racking coughs as his body fought to free itself of the invading fluid. She rolled him to his side and watched in morbid fascination as he coughed up what seemed to be a gallon of water.

As the spasms eased he laid on his side still breathing harshly. "You ok?" she asked, laying her hand on his shoulder. If he was too out of it they were in serious trouble because there was no way in hell she could move him more than a few feet.

He responded by throwing out his arm and pushing her back with a growl. "Rhe'u!" he snarled, struggling to sit up

Startled, Sam scooted back, her hand fumbling for her sidearm and realizing it was gone, going for her knife. She held it up before her with hands she wished weren't shaking so much as he struggled to his feet, then collapsed to the ground as his right leg gave out from under him. She may not understand his language but the tone of his voice screamed 'get the hell away from me'. Sure, no problem. I'll stay here, you stay there. Plenty of sand to go around.

He cried in pain and she was torn between the desire to help and her own sense of self-preservation. Even had she been 100 it was unlikely she could best him. He moved feebly both hands clutching his hip.

"Teal'c?' she asked cautiously after several silent seconds.

He turned his head toward her. "Captain Carter?" he asked frowning at the sight of the knife in her hand.

"Yeah. You ok?" she asked, still keeping her distance.

"I am…not," he admitted.

"Thought so. I'm gonna…come over there," she said, getting to her feet.

He watched her approach, lowering but not sheathing the knife. Was there some danger he had not seen? She knelt beside him sticking the knife in the sandy soil where it was readily available. "How bad is your leg?"

"It is not broken but…I believe I struck a boulder with it."

She nodded. "That had to hurt."

"Indeed. Your arm?"

Sam looked down almost as if she had forgotten the injury. Adrenaline was a wonderful thing. "Ooh. I…I think I hit a rock with it," she finished with a rueful grin.

"We should stop the bleeding," he said, slowly sitting up a grimace crossing his face.

"Well the first aid kits are in our packs which are…somewhere," she said with a shrug eyeing their barren surroundings. It was almost as though the creek bed had spread out so far that it was no longer a bed but rather a large flood plain. Which was likely the reason they'd survived. The water had just spread out becoming shallower and shallower until it all just soaked into the ground. She'd seen a documentary about the Colorado River once, how it just trickled out into the desert and disappeared.

"This will have to suffice," he said, removing his jacket and taking off his t-shirt. She glanced away, slightly unnerved by her first sight of his pouch. Uggh. That was what he had to live with? And there was a goa'uld living in there?

He tore the soggy material and deftly bandaged her arm with gentle fingers that belied their size. "I do not know how far we were carried but it is likely if you walk upstream you will encounter O'Neill and DanielJackson," he said, slipping his soggy jacket back on and lying down with a barely audible groan.

"You mean if WE walk."

"It is doubtful that my leg can withstand the strain of such a journey."

"Then we'll just wait here."

"No. You will go for assistance and I will remain here. If my larva heals me soon enough I will catch up with you. Or you can send a rescue party for me," he stated, closing his eyes.

"No." He opened his eyes and raised his eyebrow. It had been years since someone had dared tell the First Prime of Apophis no. "You stay. I stay," she stated, crossing her arms across her chest in the age-old gesture of defiance. It lost some of its effect however when she grimaced as it jarred her arm.

"Captain Carter. We have no supplies. The most logical course of action is for you to leave me. I am barely mobile and my presence would greatly decrease your chances of reaching safety," he tried to explain. Did she not understand? It was not appropriate for one warrior to risk his life for another. It was better to lose just one than two.

"That may be how Jaffa do it but not we primitive Tau'ri. You go. I go. You stay. I stay," she declared plopping to the ground beside him. "I could teach you tic-tac-toe while we wait. Do you want to be x's or o's?" she said, drawing lines in the sandy soil.

He looked at her stubborn countenance and knew it was an argument he could not win. "Women," he muttered in his native tongue. "Very well, we shall attempt to make it back to the Stargate."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jack walked slowly through the sparse grass, his eyes scanning the faint trail left by Carter and Teal'c on their way to the site. He silently berated himself for allowing them to be split up. He should have known better, especially since the god Murphy ruled his life. A whole range of  'what-ifs' streamed through his brain complicated by the fact that they were on an alien planet where anything could go wrong and they had no idea what was normal and what was deadly.

And add to that he'd paired off an alien warrior and a slightly green captain both of whom he'd only met a month ago he was starting to get a really bad feeling about the whole thing.

"Oh boy." Daniel dragged Jack's attention back to his surroundings. They were at the edge of a small drop off, maybe five feet down. But it looked like they were standing at the banks of a river whose water supply had abruptly been turned off. The area before them was desolate, nothing but rocks and wet looking sand with a small stream winding in the middle. There were a few tiny tufts of vegetation but they were battered and abused. "I haven't seen something like this in years," Daniel continued, kneeling at the edge.

"Like what?"

"It's a wash. One hell of a big one."

"Excuse me?"

"In desert environments the sandy soil just can't hold water so whenever it rains all the water just rushes down into these washes and turns into a flash flood. They can be incredibly violent but don't last long. I'll bet in normal conditions that stream out there is even smaller. But when it rains like it did up in those mountains," he said pointing at the dissipating clouds. "Then it swells up until…heck this one looks to be at least half a mile wide."

Jack looked down at the tracks leading to the gully and the lack of tracks returning and got that sinking feeling all over again. "So they could have crossed a tiny creek and came back a little bit later and found the Mississippi?" he asked, trying to get some perspective.

"Yeah. Or…"

"Or?"

"Daniel grimaced. "They're called flash floods for a reason. They could have started to cross this when it was totally dry and got hit by a wall of water."

"A wall of water?"

"Well that's what it looks like. When I was on this dig in New Mexico there was a flash flood. This huge wave, just like a baby tsunami came sweeping down the ravine. It washed away three cars."

Jack nodded. "If we go down there, how much danger are we in?"

"Huh?"

"Let's say Carter and Teal'c went body surfing. What are the chances we'll end up the same way?" It wouldn't be much of a rescue if they all ended up missing. Hammond had promised to send a team to help them search for their MIA teammates as soon as they could be rounded up and briefed…that was something they needed to talk about, maybe having a rescue team on stand by 24/7…and the last thing they needed were two more people to look for.

Daniel shook his head. "As long as it doesn't rain we should be fairly safe."

"Ok." Jack jumped down and started to cross the wash followed by Daniel, both men keeping a wary eye and ear upstream.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Let's take five," Sam gasped maneuvering towards a large rock. She helped Teal'c sit then plopped herself to the ground at his feet. She pulled the T-shirt out of her waistband and bent over to mop her forehead. It hadn't been this hot before. Or maybe the humidity was just higher now due to the rain.

She scanned the horizon looking for anything familiar, or better yet the other half of their team. They were at least an hour overdue for their check in and since their radios were waterlogged the colonel had to know something was wrong. The big question was if he could find their trail and figure out what had happened.

Originally she'd thought they'd been carried a mile or maybe two downstream, but it had to be much farther than that. She could still see the mountains in the distance but she also knew how deceptive that could be. Heck you could see Pikes Peak fifty miles away in clear weather. She idly swatted at a few fly type bugs that seemed attracted to the perspiration on her body.

"You know, I'd almost like it to rain again," she said trying not to think about how thirsty she was. The few puddles that had been left by the flood had evaporated quickly and there was no sign of the stream. Both of them had lost their canteens along with their packs along the way. She'd also lost her rifle and luckily that annoying helmet. They still had their jackets but the heavy material was damp and likely to do more harm than good if this desert had cool nights like deserts on Earth.

Her companion slowly edged himself off the rock and sat beside her. She frowned as he stuck his hands into the soil and began to dig a small hole.

"Teal'c?"

"This sometimes works," he said, digging deeper. She watched as the ground grew darker and wetter. Once the hole was a foot or so deep he stopped digging and waited. She watched in amazement as the bottom of the hole began to fill with water. Slightly muddy and discolored but water none the less.

"Now that is a trick."

"Many soft bottomed waterways have an accompanying subterranean system with them." He held out a hand to still hers that was reaching for the precious fluid. "I should drink first to determine if it is safe." 

"Won't it make you sick too?"

"If it is contaminated it will make me ill but to a lesser degree than you. My primta will provide some protection."

She quelled the desire to push him aside and take a drink. She didn't like the thought of using him as a guinea pig. But he did have a point; the larva he carried did give him some advantages. She already suspected that if it had been one of the others with her they'd be sitting back where they'd woken up waiting for rescue or worse one of them might not have survived.

"Aliens first," She said, making a gesture. She watched him drink; frowning as handful after handful disappeared until the hole was dry. Surely this hadn't been some trick to get all the water? He sat there for a second, his eyes closed. "Aah Teal'c?" He was OK wasn't he? He wasn't going to keel over and die on her now?

"It is…flavorful but safe," he said. "It will replenish itself in a few moments. We are fortunate it did rain otherwise the water would likely be several feet below the surface."

She looked down and saw that the hole was indeed filling back up and this batch was a tiny bit clearer than the previous one. She drank and they both took turns until their thirst was sated.

He looked at the horizon. "We should continue. Dusk is approaching and this is not a safe place to sleep."

She got to her feet and pulled him up feeling slightly refreshed. "About how much further do you think we have to go?"

"I am not…" he broke off as a baying wail drifted to them.

"What the hell?" Sam asked scanning the horizon.

"I do not…" They heard the wail again, this time it seemed a bit closer. With a sick feeling he recognized the sound. "We must go," he stated urgently.

"What is it?" Sam asked alarmed.

"An animal. A hunter used by the goa'uld to track escaped slaves."

"What? There are goa'uld here?" Great, this kept getting better and better.

"We do not have time for explanations. We must go. Now!" If nothing else the urgency in the enigmatic man's voice made her shove her curiosity aside and grab his arm. She pulled it over her shoulder and they set off as quickly as his leg would allow.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Daniel followed Jack down the wash, his eyes searching for any sign of his companions. If Carter and Teal'c had been able to survive for just a bit they might have made it until the water started to dissipate. Maybe. But he also knew just how powerful rushing water could be. He'd been on searches for flood victims a time or two. The ravages a seemingly benign thing like water could visit upon its victims was horrifying.

And this one had been very powerful, if the scattered bits of flotsam and debris was anything to go by. He could see signs where some of the boulders had been moved by the sheer force of the water.

He glanced over at Jack's taciturn face and knew the man was worried. They had safely crossed the wash and found four sets of prints on the other side, two coming, and two going. This combined with the single set on the near side confirmed that the pair had run into trouble.

Jack had tried the radio one more time before conceding that the water had most likely ruined theirs. Neither of them offered the option that the radio could be working, but there could be no one alive on the other end to answer it.

Something caught his eye and he stepped over to it. "Jack!" he called, bending down and pulling it out of the ground. He held up the damming evidence. Teal'c's staff weapon.

"Damnit," Jack cursed quietly. The Jaffa was a warrior to the bone. There was no way he'd just set his weapon aside.

"The good news is that the wash is starting to widen," Daniel said, looking at the dwindling stream they had been following. It was now just a foot wide or so, more a trickle than a stream. He figured it would soon disappear entirely.

"How so?" Jack asked, running his hands through his hair in frustration.

"The wider the wash the more spread out the water flow. Which means the less violent the flood and the faster it dissipates," Daniel explained, brushing bits of damp sand off the staff. "Imagine if you had to evacuate Colorado Springs. The difference between using all four lanes of I-25 or trying to squeeze everyone onto one lane of Highway 24."

Jack nodded. "So you're saying this is a good thing." He waved downstream at the widening walls of the ravine.

"It gives them a better chance." Daniel refrained from telling his friend that of all the searches he'd participated in, no one had survived.

"Ok. So…" Jack paused as they heard a faint wail. The colonel raised his gun in a flash. "Whatever that is I got a funny feeling it ain't good." He jogged forward. Daniel trotted after him switching the staff to his left hand so he could more easily reach his pistol. He could think of a dozen animals that could make that kind of sound and none of them he'd like to meet without a gun.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Aargh!" Sam cursed as one of them tripped over something and they both crashed to the ground. She lay there for a second, breathing heavily as she felt the sweat drip off her face. Teal'c had set a punishing pace, one she couldn't even begin to imagine how he was sustaining. She had a horrible stitch in her side and her shoulders ached from the unaccustomed burden of having to support more and more of his weight.

She raised her head and glanced at him. He too was sweating heavily and was pale despite his complexion. "Teal'c? You ok?"

"We will not elude the beast," he said evenly.

"What is it?" She demanded, pushing herself up. He was right. True they were moving slow, but over the past half hour they had heard the creature come closer and closer. She had no idea what it was but if it frightened a Jaffa she was pretty sure she didn't want to meet it.

"It is an Emis, a hunter bred by the goa'uld. It is taught to hunt humans." He gestured at her arm, which was bleeding again, his makeshift bandages soaked through with a combination of blood and sweat. "It is especially attracted to blood," he admitted grudgingly. He had hoped not to reveal that fact but felt now that she had to know the truth. It was the only fragile advantage she would have. 

"Great. My first animal attraction in a while and it wants me for lunch. So how do you defeat this thing?" She asked, an idea rattling around in her head. An idea she wasn't too crazy about, and one he'd downright disapprove of.

"They have a very tough hide although their underbelly is more vulnerable. It usually takes several blasts from a staff weapon to incapicitate it," he said, guilt weighing heavily upon him. It was his fault they were in this situation. He was the one who'd lost his balance and consigned them to the flood. It was his responsibility to assure that the captain made it back to her people alive. He could at least fulfill that part of his pledge to O'Neill. "It is possible that unhampered by my weight you can out run the creature."

She didn't answer with the expected protest. She was staring off in the distance and he followed her gaze. It was here. The Emis loped to a stop and started to walk towards them, slowly and confidently.

It was an old one, its hide ragged and rough, bearing many scars. The goa'uld that had been mining this planet must have abandoned the animal when they left, likely because the Emis was past its prime even then. And the goa'uld had little use for anything that could no longer serve them.

He saw his companion tense as she slowly drew her knife out if its sheath. The blade was pitiful protection from an Emis. "Give me the knife and run," he ordered softly holding out his hand, hoping not to startle the creature.

If he could just engage it in combat he might purchase Captain Carter enough time to find the others. They still should have their weapons and could provide protection.

Instead of following his order she eased to her feet, holding the knife in a white-knuckled grip. Slowly she began to edge away from him. Yes. Divide the creature's attention. She did understand.

He steeled himself expecting the Emis to go for him first. Instead it studied them both for a moment then turned and commenced to stalking the Tau'ri, inexorably moving forward. NO. It should have gone for the weakest of the pair and he who could not move was the easier victim. That was how they were trained, to weed the weak from the slave ranks.

The blood. Captain Carter was bleeding. It would go after the blood first.

He watched in morbid fascination as it continued to stalk her, forcing her to back slowly away. In a flash it hit him. She knew it would go after her first. That was why she was drawing it away from him. NO. She would not sacrifice her life for his.

Resolutely he struggled to his feet. He had to get the creature's attention. He picked up a rock to throw at it. He had to distract it.

Then it attacked.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam slowly backed away from the…thing. The goa'uld bred this? What kind of sick bastards were they? It was about four feet high at the shoulder, covered with thick skin, something she'd imagine a dinosaur having. It was mottled black and a sickly gray green. It had no real tail but its four paws were tipped with thick black talons. It wasn't wailing anymore, but right now she'd prefer that to it's silent sniffing of the air. It was now close enough that she could see its nostrils flare and the saliva dripping from its open mouth, ringed with yellow, broken teeth.

This was a crazy idea. Definitely not one of her best. Was it too late to change her mind? Teal'c, mind if I come over there and hide behind you?

She steadily let it force her away from Teal'c. That had been the whole point of this really stupid idea of hers. Try to let at least one of them survive this. And who knows, if she could just get the knife in the right place she just might hurt it enough that it would leave them alone. That's how it always worked in the movies anyway.

She tightened her grip on the knife, her fingers aching with the force. She could feel her palms sweat; heck, all of her was sweating. She could hear her heart pounding in her ears. Complete and total terror had that effect on her. 

Maybe if she backed away long enough it would just get bored and go harass someone else. Her eyes flickered to Teal'c who was struggling to his feet. Damnit, stay down. Don't remind it you're there.

Noticing her second of inattention it charged.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jack frowned pausing a second to slip off his sunglasses. What the hell was that? Daniel stopped beside him, panting heavily from their run. As they'd heard the wail of the whatever-it- was coming closer and closer their jog had turned into an out and out dash.

There were three figures ahead, and since they only had two lost teammates, something told him the third one didn't belong. He saw the third figure, an animal of some type advance on one of the people, Carter, it had to be Carter. He had seen a flash of blonde hair. She was backing away. Why wasn't she just shooting the damn thing? Or blowing it up.  She likes to blow stuff up. It was Daniel who tended to talk first. And why wasn't Teal'c helping? He was just standing there. Jack ran forward, raising his rifle. To hell with wondering why, he could just ask her. That was, of course, assuming that that thing hadn't killed her by the time he got there. A little closer. He just had to get a little closer. He had to kill it on the first shot or they would have a wounded…. Whatever to deal with.

Suddenly the beast charged and the two figures became a rolling confusion of arms and legs. Jack ran, feeling like he was in one of those nightmares where no matter how fast you ran, it just wasn't fast enough. He raised his gun and fired into the air hoping to startle the thing, cursing when it had no effect.

He skidded to a halt just a few feet away, trying to ignore the mingled grunts and growls of the battling pair and raised his rifle, flipping the switch to change it from rapid fire to single shot. He aimed at the pair unable to get a clear shot for long enough to take it. There was no way, not without risking killing Carter too. He impatiently pulled his rifle over his head and set it aside, yanking his pistol from its holster. This was going to have to be down and dirty. 

He dove into the fray trying to wrap one arm around the creature's neck and keep its fangs from doing any more damage. He could see Carter's struggles weakening. He didn't have much more time. All it would take is one well-placed bite and it would kill her. He had to get it off her. He wrapped his legs around the thing's body and tried to use his weight to roll it off her. If he could just get it away he could get a shot in…

Amazingly he felt it roll away and his breath was squeezed out of him as it rolled over him its feet flailing in the air.

He let it go and felt it roll off him. He struggled to get to his feet. He had to get up.

The creature growled and started to charge…then jerked back as it was hit by a staff blast. Stunned he stared as blast after blast struck the thing, each one forcing it back a bit until it collapsed to the ground with a weak wail.

Out of his peripheral vision he saw Daniel coming to stand by him, Teal'c's staff weapon aimed unwaveringly at the thing.  He fired one more time and they both flinched, when it didn't move. 

With a look, Jack edged forward and aimed his pistol at it. He squeezed off a round into what he hoped was its brain. Nothing. It didn't even flinch. "It's dead," he declared, kicking the carcass.

"Captain Carter. Are you ok?" He turned to see Daniel kneeling over Carter who wasn't moving. Crap.

Jack abandoned the corpse and hurried over to kneel beside the captain. "Carter? You ok?" he asked, looking for injuries. Her left arm was crudely bandaged and her pants were torn in a couple of places. She still had a knife clutched in her right hand. The weapon was coated with viscous black blood, as was much of her.  It looked like she'd gotten at least one good lick in. 

She opened her eyes and frowned at the two men. "Colonel?" She gasped.

"Yeah. You all right?" he repeated.

She nodded and pushed herself up on her elbows. "Where is it?"

"It's dead," Daniel reassured her.

"Good," she said noticing she still had the gore-covered knife in her hand. Jack fought back a grin as she dropped it with a look of disgust on her face and tried to wipe her hand off on her pants leg. If she was disgusted then she couldn't be hurt too badly.

'Sierra gulf one-niner this is sierra gulf two niner. Come in.'

Jack grabbed his radio. Better late than never. 'Go two niner.'

'We found your trail. What's your situation sir?'

'We're about two miles down the wash. Everybody's mostly in one piece though I think we could use a little transportation assistance though,' he said, glancing at Sam who was still sitting right where he'd found her. Teal'c had limped to her side and was leaning heavily on his staff weapon. He was hurt too? That explained things…sort of. Daniel was digging through his pack and Jack guessed he was starting first aid.

'Ten-four sir. Our ETA is 30 minutes.' 

'Take your time, we're secure. Sierra gulf one out.' Jack turned back to his reunited kids.  They were alive although it had been close. Too close. A few more minutes and he'd be writing next-of-kin letters for Carter. Did she have a next-of-kin? He'd have to look in her file. Or better yet he could just ask her. There's an idea.

He sighed and eased himself down to help Daniel. The sooner they were mobile the sooner he could get his kids home and get his weary body into that armchair. This had damned well better be the exception than the norm. If every mission was going to be like this he'd be gray in a year.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam walked down the hall followed by the cooperative airman. If the man thought her request was an odd one he refrained from saying so. She came to a stop outside her destination and dismissed him with a grateful smile. She didn't need a witness. If this didn't work out the less people she looked silly in front of the better.

She'd been released from the infirmary after a through exam and fifteen stitches in her arm. Not bad considering. But she hadn't been able to talk her way into going home. So here she was. She knocked on the door and nervously waited for an answer. It opened and she smiled at Teal'c.

"Captain Carter, do you require assistance?" He asked, a slight puzzled look on his face.

"What? Oh no. I aah…I was wondering if you were busy?" she asked stupidly. This was a bad idea. She should have just went back to her quarters.

"I was meditating."

"Ooh. Sorry. I can go…" She started to turn. Yep, definitely a bad idea.

"However that is something I can do later," he said opening the door and revealing a dim room, lit by candlelight. She gave him a small smile and started to push the cart into the room. Seeing her hampered by having one arm in a sling he grasped the cart and pulled it into the room. She followed. So this was what the VIP suites looked like? She'd heard that he had been moved to one upon his return from P3575. She was glad General Hammond had done that. If the poor man was doomed to living on the base he should at least have a comfortable room. But she didn't get the candles. Someone had explained the light switch to him hadn't they?

"Over there," she said, spying a plug in. He obliged and she set to connecting the equipment.

"What is this?" he asked, frowning at the large square box and the smaller one atop it. Was it another intelligence gathering device? Did they desire more knowledge from him?

"It's a TV and VCR. We use them for entertainment," she said turning the devices on.

He frowned at the blue screen. This was what the Tau'ri called entertainment? Perhaps he should give them the address to the resort planet Apophis had once visited. 

She pulled another small item out of a box and slid it into the smaller device. "It's got to get boring just staring at the same four walls. I was wondering if you'd like to watch a movie. I even have popcorn," she said, reaching down to pull out a small bag from the bottom shelf along with two bottles of a beverage.

He saw the pensive look on her face as if she thought he was going to tell her to leave. A part of him did wish for his solitude. However a larger part of him was insatiably curious about his new home. O'Neill had promised to show it to him…a promise he had yet to deliver on. He recognized the gesture of friendship and acceptance she offered him.

He motioned towards the bed, which was the only comfortable piece of furniture in his room. The general had said something about finding him more furnishings. She sat down and he hesitated. Perhaps it was taboo for unmated females to share a sleeping surface? She allayed those fears by patting the other side. He joined her and she handed him a bottle of the drink. "I wish it was beer but I obviously couldn't get that in the PX. Anyway, root beer and popcorn are a great combination. And when we get tired of that I also have chocolate covered raisins, milk duds and Gumi bears," she said struggling to open the bag one handed. He took it from her hands and broke the seal. It smelled…different. But surprisingly good. He followed her example and took a small handful of the food. It was oddly crunchy and airy.

"What is this?"

"It's popcorn. Corn that is heated until…until it pops. Then we put salt and butter on it or in this case cheese," she explained taking another large handful.

He nodded and took some more. It was indeed good. She picked up the small controlling device and pressed a button. Immediately the TV screen turned from blue to color as the movie began. "What is this movie?" he asked, taking a drink of the root beer almost spitting it out as it burned his mouth. The Tau'ri drank this stuff? No wonder they were so small.

"It's…you know some of those strange phrases the colonel uses?" He nodded. "Well he got some of them from this movie," she explained as the opening credits to 'The Wizard of Oz' began.

He nodded again and they both settled back to enjoy the show.

Five hours and another movie later Teal'c picked up the remote control and turned off the TV. Very interesting this Tau'ri entertainment. After they had finished 'The Wizard of Oz' they'd watched something called 'The Ten Commandments'. The dichotomy of Tau'ri entertainment was puzzling. A fantasy tale was something reserved for children at bedtime while a recounting of historical events was usually reserved for a bard at a festival. Yet the Tau'ri apparently had a liking for both. Captain Carter said there was a book of such tales. He would need to search it out. A person could learn a lot about a culture by studying its myths.

He looked over at his companion who was sprawled out asleep. She had drifted off somewhere during the plagues. Throughout the movie she had talked some, reminiscing about events in her life. He now felt he understood her better, the puzzle that was his teammate. In many respects she was like him, an outsider struggling to find her place and acceptance in the world. Someone who didn't want to be seen only as 'the girl' just as he desired to be more than 'the alien'. Her intelligence had segregated her from her peers just as his prowess had him. She sought to find her way from under the shadow of her father just as he did.

And after watching her react with her superiors he felt she too had times when she wished she could speak her mind but could not. There were so many times during his service to Apophis that he'd had to keep his own counsel that reticence had become his normal behavior. It was a behavior that apparently disconcerted the Tau'ri.

He had formed a certain kinship with this Tau'ri woman, something that both pleased and puzzled him.

She muttered and stirred in her sleep.  He should get someone to take her to her quarters but he was loath to disturb her. Asleep she looked like a child not a stubborn warrior who would defy a jaffa and attempt to kill an Emis single-handedly.  And he had to admit the company was welcome. The only times he'd slept away from Drey'ac had been while he was engaged in battle. He missed the presence of another in his bed.

With a small sigh he got up, cleared the bed of the debris of what she'd called a 'junk food orgy' and pulled the blanket to cover her smiling a bit as she turned over and snuggled under it. Ry'ac would do that. He felt a twinge of homesickness, as he feared he might never see his son again. He pushed those thoughts aside. He had made his decision; he would have to live with it. 

 He went to the small closet and got out another blanket. He laid back down and covered himself with it. Listening to the quiet breathing of his temporary roommate he fell into a peaceful sleep, the first he'd had since arriving on Earth. This was not the planet of his birth but…one day it just might become home.

Fin


End file.
